Monson School Committee Working Meeting 4/16/25

Minutes of the 

Monson School Committee

Working Meeting 

Date: 4-16-25

Present:  Alison Morgan (Chair), Jamie Murphy, Colleen Flynn, Karen Nothe-Valley, and Peter Wiggins (absent), Tracy Novick, MASC Field Director, and Jen Begnoche, Chair Superintendent Search Committee 

Note: This working meeting was held in-person and not recorded. 

Ms. Morgan called the meeting to order at  6:05  p.m.

Meeting information: 

Report of the superintendents search committee 

Jen Begnoche delivered the Search Report to the School Committee.  It was reported that there were (13) confidential applicants of which (7) were interviewed.  Of those interviewed, the Superintendent Search Committee unanimously advanced (3) finalists:  Paul Foster (Hartford CT Public Schools), Joanne Menard (Holliston Public Schools) and Michael Morris (Westfield Public Schools).

Alison Morgan requested that Tracy Novick briefly review the process up to this point.  Tracy reviewed the composition of the search committee (2 students, 2 admin, 1 staff, 1 teacher, 3 parents representing various buildings, and 2 community members).  Tracy also reminded everyone that the search committee deliberations occurred in Executive Session and remain confidential, along with the identity of applicants/interviewees who were not advanced as finalists. 

Next steps in superintendent search

Tracy reviewed next steps:

• There  will be visits in both directions meaning finalists will come here for in-district visits and School Committee members will visit finalists’ home districts.  

• Tracy will work with School Committee members individually to create a compilation of interview questions. 

• The finalists will be interviewed by the School Committee in a public meeting. The date to interview finalists will be 5/8/25. 

• For site visits to their districts, Tracy facilitates the scheduling. Two school committee members max will visit a particular district ensuring all finalist home districts are visited by at least one School Committee member. At these visits, School Committee members meet with a variety of people who currently work with a finalist (typically, teachers, students, community members, union representatives, school committee members, etc.). 

• Tracy recommends meet and greets for finalists here, where School Committee members typically wouldn’t attend but could receive a feedback summary from Tracy compiled from feedback forms collected from attendees, if desired.  School Committee members unanimously agreed to have Tracy move forward with the feedback form. 

Last, in anticipation of a finalist potentially being selected on 5/8/25, the School Committee set an Executive Session for 5/13/25 to potentially conduct strategy sessions in preparation for negotiations of a Superintendent contract.

The meeting was adjourned at 6:48 PM

Documentation for this meeting:

Agenda

Distributed at meeting:  4/16/25 Search Report 

Approved by Committee:

_________________________________________________

Karen Nothe-Valley, Secretary